The present invention relates, in general, to motor vehicle lift gates or rear hatches and more specifically, to accessory components mounted on such vehicle lift gate or rear hatches.
In modern vehicles, larger vehicles such as SUVs, vans and station wagons have a lift gate or rear hatch which closes a rear opening in the vehicle body. The lift gate is pivotally attached, usually by hinges, to the vehicle body structure surrounding the rear opening. The lift gate is releasably latchable to the vehicle structure by a latch mechanism so as to-be movable between a closed position latched to the vehicle body structure and a pivoted, open position allowing access to the interior of the vehicle through the rear opening.
The lift gate itself is formed of a panel structure, which is stamped or otherwise formed into a panel having an upper opening for receiving a glass window. An interior trim panel is attachable to the lift gate panel to cover components mounted on the gate.
The lift gate forms a platform for a number of different accessories or components, such as a flipglass latch, a wiper motor and associated wiper arm, license plate lights, and a wash pump and/or wash nozzle. Various lights as well as the center high mounted stop light may also be mounted on the lift gate along with the lift gate latch mechanism. Other components which are usually mounted on the lift gate can include electrical contact connections to the defrost grid mounted on the lift gate glass or fiberglass.
All of these accessories or components are manufactured separately from the lift gate panel structure and are mounted, usually one at a time, on the lift gate while the vehicle is being assembled. The mounting of each component on the lift gate panel either directly or through brackets typically requires mechanical fasteners and usually, an electrical connection via a plug-in connector, screw terminal, etc. All of the mounting procedures and the mechanical and electrical connections require time, multiple workers and an increased length on the vehicle assembly line. In addition, although each component can be tested at its manufacturing site, the numerous multiple mechanical and electrical connections all create additional sources of defects which may require additional checking after assembly on the lift gate.
As can be seen, all of these factors lead to a substantial assembly time for the lift gate thereby resulting in a higher than desirable cost. To address these problems, a modular approach has been proposed in which several components are separably manufactured, pretested, and assembled into a single module, with only the module having to be mounted in a single operation on a lift gate. The number of separate mechanical fasteners and electrical connections can also be reduced by this modular approach.
So-called “appliques” are mounted above the license plate mounting area on a lift gate and serve as a mounting platform for various lift gate mounted components, such as a lift gate latch release handle, license plate lamps, lift gate lock key cylinder, etc. The assignee of the present invention has previously devised lift gate appliques which have the individual components mounted directly to a decorative applique body or housing.
While the mounting of individual components separably to the applique requires a certain amount of time and labor, the overall assembly of the lift gate in terms of individual steps and time is simplified since the applique is mounted as a complete unit on the lift gate as a sub-assembly, with wires or a wiring harness extending from the electrically operated components on the applique passing through an opening in the lift gate for connection to interior vehicle wiring.
However, it is believed that further improvements can be made with respect to reducing assembly time of the applique and the components mounted thereon. In addition, it is believed that further improvements could be made in separating the mounting of the components from direct attachment to the applique to enable the components and/or the applique to be separately replaced if damaged. In addition, it would be desirable to provide a lift gate applique which can have a standard shape or design body, which can receive different component configurations without modification to the applique body itself